After a second all-you-can-eat full, English breakfast at the Davenport Park Hotel, both Peter and I left at around 0830 and headed into Stockport in order to then go our separate ways home. We caught Stagecoach in Manchester ADL Trident 2/Enviro400 19057 (MX06 FSG) at 0839 from the stop opposite and alighted at the stop in central Stockport outside the Great Central Leisure Centre at 0850.
Peter's plan was to catch trent barton's Skyline 199 to Buxton after photographing a few vehicles, and then their Transpeak service to Nottingham, before getting a train home from there. My journey home was far more simplistic: the 0926 First Transpennine express train to Cleethorpes for 1154, in the form of Desiro 185118. We left a shade down at 0928 but I wasn't bothered as I'd accidentally stumbled upon the best seat on the train! Unlike the Class 158s these vehicles replaced, the doors are not situated at the extremities of the carriages - they're about a fifth of the way in from each end, meaning if you're able, grab an airline seat next to the driver's compartment and you will never be interrupted by people walking past for the entirity of your journey. Specifically the seat means you'll be travelling backwards, but that's something I lived with very well - it's also a trolley-free zone, too as there is physcially nowhere for the chap selling hot water with a tea bag for £1.80 to turn it round.
I'd booked my ticket online a few days before, which automatically reserves you a seat: coach C, seat 62. There were only 2 reserved in the entire train, the other being the seat next to me.
I bailed out at Grimsby Town at 1148 and walked to the bus station for the 1204 Service X1, operated by Stagecoach Grimsby-Cleethorpes, and at 1210 Volvo B10M-55/Plaxton Paladin 20282 (R722 RPY) arrived and I got off near home at about 1220.
